death row: 8200 according the Justice Project Pakistan, end 2017, 4993 according other sources

year of last executions: 0-0-0

death sentences: 8

executions: 6

international treaties on human rights and the death penalty:

International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights

Convention on the Rights of the Child

Convention Against Torture and Other Cruel, Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment

situation:Pakistan sanctions the death penalty for 27 offences (1), including blasphemy, stripping a woman in public, terrorist acts, sabotage of sensitive institutions, sabotage of railways, attacks on law enforcement personnel, spreading hate against the armed forces, drugs, sedition and cybercrimes. On 17 December 2014, Pakistan lifted the six-year moratorium on the death penalty in terrorism-related cases, a day after the Taliban-perpetrated massacre at a military-run school in Peshawar in which 150 people, including 134 children, were killed. In December 2014, after the lifting of the moratorium, Pakistan hanged seven people sentenced to death, all for crimes of terrorism. On 3 March 2015, the federal government formally lifted the moratorium on death penalty of all the condemned prisoners. The last execution before the lifting of the moratorium took place on 15 November 2012, when a soldier, Muhammad Hussain, was hanged at a jail in Mianwali city, Punjab Province, for murdering his senior officer Havaldar Khadim Hussain. His hanging ended a de facto moratorium on executions that had been observed since December 2008, when another soldier, Shahid Abbas, was executed for murder. In 2008, Pakistan executed at least 36 people, a significant decrease from 2007, when 134 convicts were executed. Since then, every three months the President’s Office had issued a letter which had put a stay on all capital punishment – a routine that had been in operation for the following years. After the lift of the moratorium, at least 478 executions were recorded, more than 80% percent of the total executions have been carried out in Punjab province only.

In 2017, 66 executions were carried out, 44 of which were of terrorists convicted by military courts. The global number is lower than the 87 executions (including 7 convicted terrorists) of 2016 and the at least 326 people, including 30 convicted terrorists, executed in 2015.According the Human Rights Commission of Pakistan, in 2017 courts awarded the death sentence to 253 people, including five women, in 197 different cases. Among these punishments, 177 were death sentences awarded by the ordinary session courts.According the Justice Project Pakistan 8,200 prisoners are on death row, which is one of the highest figures in the world and at least 45 are women. However, other sources said that a total of 4,993 prisoners have been awarded death sentence, which includes 40 females and 4,953 males. Punjab has 4,193 death row convicts, Sindh has 524, KP has 204 and Baluchistan has 72 of these convicts. The number of foreign convicts stand at 1,117, which includes 11 females and 1,106 males. Prisoners in Pakistan, especially those on death row, live in cramped, overcrowded cells and often face abuse. In Punjab convicts are on death row in 30 jails with a total of 812 death row cells that are usually small rooms that measure 9x12 feet, have attached toilets and are cordoned off by walls that are approximately three feet high. On occasions, as many as 12 inmates have to crowd into one cell, charge rights groups. A survey by the Law and Justice Commission of Pakistan, an advisory body to the government, says three to six prisoners are usually kept in a single death cell.The Report “No Mercy: A Report on Clemency for Death Row Prisoners in Pakistan” launched on 12 April 2018 by Justice Project Pakistan, quotes the Ministry of Interior as stating that the president’s office had rejected 513 mercy petitions by condemned prisoners – 444 of which were from the first 15 months after the resumption of executions in December 2014. These data are the same released in 2016, in a written response to a question raised by Jamaat-e-Islami Senator Sirajul Haq by the Minister of Interior for the period 2011-2015. As of 15 April 2016, only 38 mercy petitions of condemned prisoners who were awarded a death sentence were pending with the Interior Ministry, of which 13 cases were under submission to the President Secretariat for decision, the document said. “Appeals of these condemned prisoners have already been rejected by higher courts,” the Interior Ministry said. It is a tradition that nobody is executed in the (Islamic) fasting month of Ramadan and an official in the federal interior ministry confirmed that a notification had been issued to halt executions during Ramadan, which in 2017 started on 26 May to 24 June.The executions are usually carried out before sunrise. The condemned has a final meal, bathes and then has time to pray before being led to the gallows. Executioners cover their face with a black hood and tie their hands and legs before hanging them.In 2017, Pakistan was revised under the UPR and the wake of the ‘scathing criticism on the excessive use of this penalty’ by UN Human Rights Mechanisms, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs moved a summary to the Prime Minister with some recommendations on the imposition of the death penalty which compelled the authorities to review punishment for the crimes carrying death penalty. It is to mention that National Action Plan for human rights, approved by the Prime Minister, has also proposed a review of existing legal framework in line with the national and international commitments related to human rights.In view of the above, the Ministry of Human Rights has proposed a consultative meeting to discuss a possible review of the 27 capital crimes and a high-level meeting was held on 15 September, 2017, at the Ministry of Law and Justice to discuss the possible review.

Blood money Pakistani law has a maximum punishment of the death penalty, or life in prison for a murder. Theoretically, the religiously stipulated retributive punishment corresponds in kind and degree to the crime. In practice, hanging rather than harm in kind is the punishment for murder in Pakistan. However, under Islamic laws, victim families can strike an out-of-court deal with the murderers, usually for a payment of Diya. In that case, the victim’s families generally appear in court to testify that they have pardoned the murderer in the name of God. The court must decide whether to accept the pardon, but judges generally follow the decision of the family. During the year, dozens of death row inmates were spared after they were pardoned by the victims’ families.

The death penalty on juveniles On 1 July 2000, the military Government promulgated the Juvenile Justice System Ordinance 2000 (JJSO) abolishing the death penalty for children under 18 years of age. The law also barred juveniles from being tried as adults and accorded them legal assistance at the expense of the State. However, the provisions in the JJSO are “in addition to and not in derogation of, any other law for the time in force and children are liable to the death penalty under other laws.” The procedure in most cases is that if a lawyer pleads this point, then the court directs that the suspect’s age be determined medically. And if it is proved that the suspect is not an adult, then the case proceeds according to the procedures laid down in the JJSO. In December 2001, President Pervez Musharraf issued a new decree commuting all juvenile death sentences to life terms. These steps did not do away with the juvenile death penalty completely however. Other minors are still not being given legal assistance despite the obligation posed by the JJSO. Moreover, the Ordinance was immediately applicable to the whole of Pakistan except Provincially-Administered Tribal Areas (PATA). The last execution of a juvenile offender took place on 13 June 2006, when Mutabar Khan was executed at the Central Prison of Peshawar after his conviction for murder in 1998. Mutabar was 16 years old at the time of his arrest in 1996. An estimated 800 of those facing execution in Pakistan may have been sentenced to death when they were children, a report released on March 18, 2015 has revealed. Justice Project Pakistan and Reprieve conducted a study of 30 prisoners close to execution and discovered that 10% were arrested and sentenced to death while still children. Should this figure hold true across the entire death row population, there could be over 800 people convicted as children among the more than 8,000 prisoners currently sentenced to death. What is shocking is that in many cases, when the minors were being tried in the lower courts, their lawyers did not use the argument that they were juveniles and hence, leniency should be exercised. Had their lawyers done so, perhaps most of them would not have been given the death penalty. These data was confirmed in the Justice Project Pakistan's report titled Death Row's Children – Pakistan's Unlawful Executions of Juvenile Offenders, released in February 2017. The report attributed low birth registration, weak implementation of the juvenile justice law, and lack of age determination methods as primary reasons for several juveniles being sentenced to capital punishment and executed in the country.In August 2017, the UN Human Rights Committee issued its concluding observations and recommendations, following the review of the initial report of Pakistan. On the death penalty, the Committee was particularly concerned that juveniles and people with psychosocial or intellectual disabilities were reportedly being sentenced to death and executed.As reported in the Annual Report “State of Human Rights in Pakistan 2017” by the Human Rights Commission of Pakistan (HRCP), a notable development in the area of juvenile justice was the establishment of the first child court in the country on 19 December 2017 at the Judicial Complex in Lahore. This court is mandated to deal with all cases involving children. On the legislative front, a new law titled Juvenile Justice System Bill 2017 was tabled in the National Assembly on 24 May 2017 and was referred to the Standing Committee on Human Rights. This Bill aims to strengthen the existing criminal justice system for juveniles and achieve speedy disposal of cases by introducing the option of diversion for the first time in Pakistan, establishing juvenile justice committees for each session division and focusing on social integration of juvenile delinquents. The Standing Committee approved the Bill on 4 July 2017 and recommended it to be passed by the NA. No further progress was seen on the Bill by the end of the year. Despite recent developments, the overall juvenile justice system in the country continued to suffer from fundamental weaknesses due to poor implementation of the law.

The war on terrorOn 31 March 2017, President Mamnoon Hussain gave his formal assent to the Pakistan Army Act 2017 and the 23rd Constitutional Amendment Bill, the two pieces of legislation aimed at granting legal cover to military courts, which extended the operation of the military courts for another two years.On 6 January 2015, Pakistan’s Parliament passed a constitutional amendment that allows a parallel system of military courts to try Islamist militants, significantly enlarging the army’s power. The new law, which was passed by a two-thirds majority in both houses of Parliament, is the central plank of the government response to the attack on the Peshawar school on 16 December 2014. The military has pushed for the new courts, arguing that a weak civilian judicial system has failed to bring Taliban and other Islamist militants to justice. The law that authorizes the courts is to remain in effect until February 2017, then postponed for two years. The government has promised to use that time to reform the broken civilian justice system, meanwhile the move was severely criticised by human rights activists and institutions as denying individuals their right to a fair trial under Article 10-A of the Constitution and Article 14 of the ICCPR. Several lawyers challenged the constitutionality of the military courts in the Supreme Court. But on 5 August 2015, Nasir ul Mulk, the chief justice, announced that all “petitions have been dismissed.” The Supreme Court has ruled that secret military courts are legal and can pass death sentences on civilians, a judgment that critics say further strengthens the military’s grip on power at the expense of civilian authorities.Particularly worrying is the opacity with which these courts have operated. Proceedings of military courts, their judgments, reasoning and evidence, and details about the alleged offenses for which suspects were tried have been kept secret. The trials were closed to the public and families of the accused. In an analysis of HRCP and JPP data further shows that almost 25 percent of the total executions have been carried out on the Sessions Court’s verdict. Though a two-member bench of the respective high courts validate the Sessions Court’s judgment however if no one pursues the cases in the high court then the lower court’s judgment will be upheld. Nearly half of military court’s death row prisoners are from Tehrik-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP).

Most death sentences since 1997 have been handed down by special anti-terrorist courts set up by then prime minister Nawaz Sharif's government to combat growing terrorist attacks in the country. The jurisdiction of these courts gradually evolved to cover political charges and cases involving gang rape and violence against children. These courts hold trials within seven days. Convicted persons have to appeal within seven days, and the appeal must also be heard and decided within a week. These provisions contravene Article 14(3)(b) of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, which entitles any person charged with a criminal offence to have adequate time and facilities for the preparation of his defence. Murder carries the religiously stipulated retributive penalty, where the punishment corresponds in kind and degree to the crime, unless the victim’s family waives the penalty, usually for a payment of diya. In practice, hanging rather than harm in kind is the punishment for murder.As reported in the Annual Report “State of Human Rights in Pakistan 2017” by the Human Rights Commission of Pakistan (HRCP), during the third cycle of the Universal Periodic Review, concern was expressed at the use of military courts to try civilians for terrorism-related offences. The concluding observations of the UN Human Rights Committee on Pakistan's initial report also expressed concern at the extension of the jurisdiction of military courts to consider cases of persons detained under the Actions (in Aid of Civil Power) Regulation (AACPR). It noted with concern the number of civilians, allegedly including children, that had been convicted or sentenced to death in secret proceedings, and that some 90 percent of convictions were based on confessions.In 2017, of the 66, 44 were for terrorism according to military courts. In 2016, of the 87 executions, 7 were for terrorism and in 2015 of the 326 people executed, 30 were terrorists.

The death penalty for apostasy and blasphemy The death penalty is imposed in Pakistan for several crimes, including capital offences under Sharia Law, such as blasphemy and sexual relations between partners not married to each other. The death penalty is used in that cases in contravention of international law and standards for acts which are not considered crimes under international law. During the third time Universal Periodic Review (UPR), Pakistan rejected recommendation to repeal of blasphemy laws.The law against blasphemy was introduced under the dictatorship of General Zia ul-Haq in 1985. The law prescribes the death penalty for anyone insulting the prophet Mohammed, other prophets or the sacred scriptures. Under section 295-C of the Penal Code: “Whoever by words, either spoken or written, or by visible representation or by any imputation, innuendo, or insinuation, directly or indirectly, defiles the sacred name of the Holy Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him), shall be punished with death or imprisonment for life, and shall also be liable to fine.” Since Zia’s rule, many hundreds of people have been prosecuted under the blasphemy law. No one has been put to death for a blasphemy conviction and most death sentences for blasphemy are overturned on appeal by higher courts. But dozens of people awaiting trial or acquitted of blasphemy charges have been slain by religious fanatics, and lawyers in defending those accused of blasphemy cases have frequently been attacked. Judges have been attacked for dismissing cases and many of the accused face years in jail as their trials drag on. Not only Christians, but also the nation’s Shiite Muslim minority has been victimised by extremist Sunni Muslim groups for years. Members of the smaller Ahmadi sect, viewed by most Pakistanis as traitors to Islam because they revere another prophet in addition to Muhammad, have been frequent victims of suicide bombings, kidnappings and other attacks. Besides being used as a tool to bully Christians, Ahmadis or other minorities, the law against blasphemy is often used by some Pakistanis embroiled in property disputes. Usually, evidence in blasphemy cases is scant, apart from the accounts given by the accusers. The controversial Islamic Hudud [Koranic punishment] Ordinances - passed in 1979 as part of Zia ul-Haq’s Islamisation programme - deal with adultery and fornication (Zina) offences, crimes related to theft, alcohol and drug consumption, and false accusations in court (Qazf). One of the most controversial provisions states that a woman must have four male witnesses to prove rape or face a charge of adultery herself. Men and women found guilty of adultery face stoning or 100 lashes. On December 1, 2006, Pakistan President Pervez Musharraf signed into law a bill amending the country's Islamic rape legislation. The bill places rape laws under Pakistan's British-influenced penal code and scraps the harsh conditions placed on rape victims. The amended law would drop the death penalty for people found to have had sex outside of marriage, though they still would be subject to a five-year prison term or $165 fine. Judges also will be able to choose whether to try a rape case in a criminal court or Islamic court. Despite the 2006 law, in remote areas of the Country where tribal and feudal systems still dominate, the tribal jury (jirga) continues to operate as the people’s recourse to the law – instead of the police – for resolving inter-tribal disputes and questions of “honour.” Under tribal codes, women are seen as men's property and an allegation of unfaithfulness is punished by death. A woman suspected of having extramarital relations is declared a kari (sinful) and tribal honour requires a family member to kill her. By the Criminal Laws Amendment Act of 2006, honor killings are to be treated as aggravated killings but in practice, honor killings may be treated more leniently than murder. The government-appointed National Commission on the Status of Women said the law was a weak one as it did not cover the crime fully, but nevertheless a step in the right direction. The law was changed after a prolonged protest by women's and human rights groups. According to the non-governmental Human Rights Commission of Pakistan (HRCP), hundreds of women are killed every year in Pakistan in the name of ‘honour.’ Hudud ordinances prevail on the domestic legislation also concerning juveniles.

In 2017, Pakistan witnessed an increase in blasphemy-related violence and mob attacks while the government continued to condone discriminatory prosecutions. The lynching in April of Mashal Khan, a young student at a university in Mardan, shocked the nation, but more incidents were to follow. According to official figures for January – November 2017, there were 135 blasphemy cases in the Punjab, 41 in Sindh, 11 in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, and 2 in Balochistan. At least 69 people over alleged blasphemy since 1990, have been extra-judicially killed according to an Al Jazeera tally.According to the United States Commission on International Religious Freedom, as reported in an article of September 2017, while not a single convict has ever been executed for blasphemy in Pakistan, there are currently about 40 people on death row or serving life sentences for the crime.According to HRCP data, released on on 28 february 2018, the ratio of the death penalty on blasphemy charges is less than one percent against the overall crimes. As per the data total 10 persons have been awarded death penalty on the charges of Blasphemy from December 2014 to February 2018. Interestingly all the ten persons awarded death penalty are from Punjab province.In 2017, 5 death sentences have been recorded for blasphemy.

The death penalty on womenIn Pakistan, according to the Interior Ministry, there are 44 women on death row out of a total of more than 6,000 people sentenced to death. Pakistan executed 9 women and the last execution occurred in 1985. According to HRCP data referred in Report 2017, two percent women have been awarded death penalty on various charges during last three years.

United NationsIn 2017, Pakistan underwent its third Universal Periodic Review by the United National Human Rights Council and accepted 168 reccomendations while it noted 117, among which those on the death penalty (abolish the death penalty, declare an official moratorium on the death penalty, ratify the Second Optional Protocol of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, repeal all provisions providing for mandatory death sentences with a view to abolishing them).On 19 December 2016, Pakistan voted again against the Resolution on a Moratorium on the Use of the Death Penalty at the UN General Assembly.

(1) The 27 capital crimes are:

‘causing death to a person other than the person whose death was intended’ (Section 301 of PPC), ‘Qatal-e-Amad’ (Section 302 of PPC), ‘dacoity resulting in death’ (Section 396 of PPC), ‘terrorism’ (Section 7 of Anti-Terrorism Act), ‘airplane hijacking or assisting in hijacking’ (Section 402-B of PPC), harbouring hijacker (Section 402-C of PPC), ‘Zina’ (Section 5 of offences of Zina (Enforcement of Hudood) Ordinance, 1979), ‘rape’ (Section 376 of PPC), ‘Zina-bil-Jabr’ (Section 6 of offences of Zina (Enforcement of Hudood) Ordinance, 1979), ‘Zina or Zina-bil-Jabr liable to Tazir’ (Section 10 (4) of offences of Zina (Enforcement of Hudood) Ordinance, 1979, ‘kidnapping for ransom’ (Section 365-A of PPC), ‘drug trafficking-exceeding 1kg’ (Section 9 of Control of Narcotics Substance Act, 1997), ‘high treason’ (Section 2 of The High Treason (Punishment) Act, 1973), ‘successful mutiny’ (Section 132 of PPC), ‘waging or abetting war against Pakistan’ (Section 121 of PPC), ‘blasphemy’ (Section 295-C of PPC), ‘hurting persons travelling by railways and damaging property of railways’ (Section 127 of Railways Act, 1890), ‘false evidence resulting death penalty’ (Section 194 of PPC), ‘stripping off women in public’ (Section 354-A of PPC), ‘kidnapping for unnatural lust’ (Section 367-A), ‘kidnapping or abducting in order to subject to unnatural lust’ (Section 12 of The offences of Zina (Enforcement of Hudood) Ordinance, 1979), ‘kidnapping child under age of 14’ (Section 364-A of PPC), “punishment of ‘Haraabah’” (Section 17 (4) of the offences against property (Enforcement of Hudood) Ordinance), ‘offences in relation to enemy’ (Section 24 of The Pakistan Army Act, 1952), ‘disclosure of parole or watchword’ (Section 26 of The Pakistan Army Act, 1952), ‘mutiny and insubordination’ (Section 31 of The Pakistan Army Act, 1952) and ‘importing, exporting into and from Pakistan dangerous drugs’, (Section 13 of the Dangerous Drugs Act, 1930).

A court sentenced a man to death for his involvement in a murder case in Daska.The judgment was announced by Additional and Sessions Judge Chaudhry Zulfiqar Ali.The prosecution told the court that accused Zeeshan and Mudassir Ali had killed Ali Hassan over a dispute four years ago.The local police registered a case against the accused and presented the challan before the court. After hearing the arguments, the judge handed down a death sentence to Zeeshan along, with a fine of Rs0.5 million. However, the judge acquitted Mudassir after giving him the benefit of doubt.

(Sources: tribune.com.pk, 24/05/2018)

10 May 2018 :

A convict was sentenced to death by an anti-terrorism court (ATC) in a sectarian killing case pertaining to the murder of a prayer leader in Karachi.The trial of Syed Nadeem Abbas Zaidi was conducted by the ATC judge in the judicial complex inside Central Jail Karachi. Zaidi was awarded capital punishment and was ordered to pay compensation amounting to Rs0.2 million to the victim’s legal heirs.The convict was also fined Rs10 thousand and sentenced to a seven-year imprisonment term for the possession of illicit arms.Qari Mohammad Amin, prayer leader of Bilal Masjid was gunned down near the mosque on February 23, while the suspect was overpowered by people present at the site, according to the prosecution.

(Sources: pakistantoday.com.pk, 10/05/2018)

13 April 2018 :

Anti-terrorism Court (ATC) Malakand awarded three counts of death sentence to one Jumaraz who was convicted of rape and killing of five years old Madeha Tariq in Besham area of District Shangla.The court imposed Rs. 6 lacs fine on prime suspect over committing unnatural act with a juvenile. The verdict was announced at anti-terrorism court Gul kada Swat under tight security. Jumaraz has to pay 2 lacs as compensation to the family.According to Senior public prosecutor Saeed Naeem, on June 21 last year Jumaraz spotted five years old Madeha who was on her way to a nearby store for buying some sweets, he took away the minor to his safe compound and brutally raped her.During the rape madeha lost her senses and the accused throws her body into the water in a filling pot.Shangla police arrested the accused and started trial and after 9 months of hearing the anti-terrorism court (ATC) announced it's verdict of punishment for three times death sentence along with 2 lac's fine.

(Sources: Pakistan Point News, 11/04/2018)

11 April 2018 :

A murder convict was hanged at the Central Jail Faisalabad.Zahid Iqbal was involved in a triple murder case. His death warrants were issued by the additional sessions judge. Zahid was arrested by Sadar police for murdering Rehana Akhtar, Inayat Ali and Harris Munir over a family dispute in 2004. Later, his body was handed over to his father. Police told that the accused had confessed his crime.

(Sources: thenews.com.pk, 10/04/2018)

21 March 2018 :

Anti-Terrorism Court (ATC) gave death sentence to a convict involved in rape and murder of a minor girl in Quetta.During the hearing, the inmate was also fined Rs2lack. Meanwhile, the bereaved family has expressed satisfaction over the court’s decision and thanked the judge.On September 29, 2014, neighbor Junaid Shahzad killed seven-year-old Sehar Batool after rape and threw her body in a heap of garbage.The officers arrested the suspect and presented challan against him in the court after which the verdict was announced following his confession and statements of 12 witnesses.

(Sources: Dunya News, 20/03/2018)

05 March 2018 :

A convict was handed down death sentence while three others were awarded life imprisonment in an honour killing case in Nowshera.Additional District and Sessions Judge, Nowshera, Hidayatullah Khan gave the verdict, awarding capital punishment to Mohammad Gul, and life term to Naqeebullah, Rehmatullah and Rasool Khan, residents of Taza Din village.Their mother, Taj Meena, was sent behind bars for 10 years, while two co-accused in the case — Habibullah and Razaullah — were declared absconders.The convicts were arrested in the murder case of a girl who had allegedly married with a person without consent of the family. The convicts had buried the victim secretly.However, the news spread on regular and social media due to which local police started investigation and exhumed her body for further investigation. Police said the autopsy report confirmed the death of the girl by strangling.They said the girl was brought back to home from Peshawar on assurance that she would be married off properly. However, the mother of the girl killed her with support of her relatives. The Pabbi police had registered the FIR against the culprits on Oct 19, 2016.

(Sources: Dawn, March 4th, 2018)

01 March 2018 :

Additional district and sessions judge, Shakeel Ahmad Sipra awarded death sentence to an accused of a murder case. According to the prosecution, convict Zulfiqar along with Faisal had shot dead Muhammad Nadeem over an old enmity in 2015, in the precincts of Dijkot police station.The judge acquitted his accomplice on benefit of doubt.

(Sources: UrduPoint / Pakistan Point News, 28/02/2018)

02 March 2018 :

The sessions court in Faisalabad awarded death sentence on two counts to an accused involved in a double murder case in limits Chak Jhumra police station.According to the prosecution, accused Rizwan of Chak Jhumra had gunned down his father Iqbal and sister Sumera over a domestic dispute some time ago. After observing evidences and witnesses, Additional District and Sessions Judge Azfar Sultan Abrar awarded capital punishment on two counts to Rizwan and ordered him for paying Rs 400,000 as compensation to legal heirs of the deceased.

(Sources: UrduPoint / Pakistan Point News - 22nd Feb, 2018)

21 February 2018 :

A man who killed three persons during a Jirga in Mardan in 2003 was hanged in District Jail Haripur. Police said the convicted murderer, Saiful Islam had killed three men during a Jirga at Mardan in 2003 and the Sessions Court Mardan had awarded him death penalty on three counts.The convict had filed a mercy appeal before the High Court and Supreme Court, however both the courts had rejected his appeal and upheld the judgment of the Sessions Court. The convict, Saiful Islam was hanged to death in District Jail Haripur. The officials of prison handed over the body to heirs after legal formalities.

(Sources: Pakistan Point News - 15th Feb, 2018)

06 February 2018 :

A Kasur court sentenced a man to death for strangling his wife.According to the prosecution, Asif, resident of Dhari Rao Hashim, Raja Jang had strangled his wife Rabia Bibi on July 28, 2017 over some domestic issue. Raja Jang police registered a case against the accused on the complaint of Dalair, Rabia's father. The police arrested the accused and produced him in the court. In the light of evidence, Additional District and Sessions Judge (ADSJ) Shahida Saeed sentenced Asif to death and fined him Rs100,000.

(Sources: nation.com.pk, 02/02/2018)

07 February 2018 :

The additional district and sessions judge, Lakki Marwat awarded death sentence to an accused in the murder case of the brother of a girl who had refused to marry him.Additional District and Sessions Judge Nasir Kamal Yousafzai awarded death sentence to Manzoor Khan on the charges of killing Zafar Ali, 18, the only son of his parents.The court imposed a fine of Rs2 million on the accused to be paid to the legal heirs of the deceased.The first information report lodged in 2009 by Sodad Khan, father of the deceased, said the accused Manzoor Khan opened fire at a car in which Sodad Khan’s wife, two daughters and son were going to attend a marriage ceremony. In the firing, he added, his only son Zafar Ali was killed.The complainant stated that before the occurrence the accused Manzoor Khan had sent a marriage proposal to his house for one of his daughters and after refusal by his daughter and son, the accused opened fire at them when the family members were going to attend a marriage ceremony.The order said after the occurrence the accused remained absconder for more than four years and the trial commenced in 2014 after his arrest.Advocate Salahuddin appeared for the complainant while public prosecutor Imranullah represented the state in the case.The court awarded the sentence to the accused Manzoor Khan after completion of arguments from all the parties.

(Sources: thenews.com.pk, 02/02/2018)

01 February 2018 :

A condemned prisoner was executed in Central Jail Faisalabad. A spokesman for the Prisons Department said the sessions court had awarded death sentence to Manzoor Ahmad of Chak No. 22-GB in 2005 for killing his sister-in-law Ameena Bibi and her two daughters Shagufta and Tasleem Bibi over a domestic dispute.The apex courts also upheld the decision of the trial court whereas the president of Pakistan also turned down the mercy petition of the accused. The body was handed over to his heirs for burial after completing necessary formalities, the spokesman said.

(Sources: urdupoint.com, 31/01/2018)

23 January 2018 :

Two convicted prisoners of death sentence were hanged in Haripur Central Jail in the morning. Jail authorities said prisoner Jan Bahadur son of Gul Bahadur resident of Mardan was convicted of killing two people with the help of his brother in 1993.Two persons Farman Ali and Nazar Ali were shot dead by the convict and were fled away after committing the crime.Jan Bahadur was later arrested in 1995 and presented before the court in Mardan where session court declared him guilty and awarded him the major penalty of twice death sentence. He also appealed against the verdict in High Court in Peshawar and Supreme Court but the decision was maintained by the apex court.Another convict Amanullah son of Muhammad Hashim, resident of D.I.Khan who had killed a female lawyer in 2005, was also hanged today.

Stay of executions

Supreme Court (SC) of Pakistan has ordered authorities to halt the implementation of an order by a military court which sentenced to death three hardcore terrorists, Express News reports.A two member bench of the top court under Justice Azamat Saeed on January 21 conducted a hearing into appeals filed in the SC against the verdict by three terrorists, namely Shafaqat, Sabir Shah and Muhammad Liaqat.After hearing the arguments of the complainants, Justice Saeed ordered the suspension of the military court ruling until further orders, and adjourned proceedings indefinitely.Muhammad Liaqat had been charged with attacking a journalist, while Sabir Shah and Shafaqat are deemed involved in the murder of Advocate Arshad Ali in Lahore. Earlier, a military court had sentenced all three of them to death.

A Pakistani woman infamously put on death row for killing her family in 1998 has been acquitted and walked free after 20 years in prison, her lawyer said.Asma Nawab was just 16 when her parents and brother were murdered in 1998, apparently during an attempted robbery in the southern port megacity Karachi.The familial nature of the murders sent a chill through the city, setting them apart from the political, ethnic and sectarian violence that gripped Karachi for many years.Nawab, her then-fiance Farhan Ahmed and two others were arrested and sentenced to death, accused of killing the family as they had not given permission for the couple to marry.Appeals moved slowly through Pakistan's creaky justice system. It was not until 2015 that her lawyers petitioned the Supreme Court, which - after a three-year hearing - ordered Nawab and the others to be released."The Supreme Court ruled that there was not sufficient evidences against my client and thus she was set free," Javed Chatari, who was been Nawab's lawyer since 1998, told AFP.She left prison on April 5.With no family left, Chatari said, he took her to Karachi's famous waterfront hoping that the breeze and the sight of the Arabian Sea buffeting the sands would help her understand that her 20-year ordeal was over."We made her ride on the horse on the Clifton Beach and later had a dinner, and then she started realising she was free," Chatari said.Nawab - who is expected to visit her family home on April 7 for the first time since the murders - could legally file a case against the state, he said.But, describing her as a poor and lonely woman, he thought it unlikely she would."That would be a tough call for her," he told AFP.

(Source: AFP, 06/04/2018)

23 March 2018 :

A Pakistani Christian sentenced to death for blasphemy nearly two years ago has been acquitted.The case against him – brought by a police officer whose protection he sought against two blackmailers – was “clearly fabricated,” his lawyer said after the 13 March acquittal.Anjum Sandhu, from the north-eastern city of Gujranwala in the Punjab Province, went to the police in May 2015 to report that Javed Naz and Jafar Ali had extorted 20,000 rupees ($200) from him and were demanding a further 50,000 rupees ($500).The two men were arrested, but they told the police that Sandhu, during a discussion at his school, had “used blasphemous words” and that they had a recording of him doing so.Napoleon Qayyum, a human rights activist and relative of Sandhu, said at the time that “the blackmailing involved an audio recording of a voice that sounded like Sandhu’s. Naz, with the help of his friend, Ali, produced an audio recording with a similar voice to Sandhu’s and threatened him with dire consequences if he did not give them the money they demanded. When they once again demanded money, Sandhu consulted with his friends and lodged a complaint with the police. The police, rather than registering a blackmail case, demanded further money from Sandhu, knowing he was running a chain of schools as a successful business”.When Sandhu tried to make a First Information Report at the police station, which, under Pakistan’s Criminal Procedure Code, should have been recorded in writing, “the policeman, rather than recording Sandhu’s statement, assumed the role of a complainant himself,” Qayyum said.The recording was investigated by the Forensic Science Laboratory. Their opinion that it was Sandhu’s voice convinced the judge and Sandhu was found guilty.Riaz Anjum, one of Sandhu’s defence lawyers at the appeal hearing, told World Watch Monitor that the case was “clearly fabricated”.“The judges noted that although the investigation was flawed, no evidence was found that could show if Sandhu had any inclination to discuss religion in the first place,” Anjum said.“It was a case of no evidence,” he added.The judges who acquitted Sandhu, Justices Sayyed Mazahar Ali Hussain Naqvi and Mushtaq Ahmad, said that, to ensure a fair, transparent and unbiased investigation, “no renowned religious scholar from the area, who would have a broad knowledge of Islam, was associated with the case”.Their judgment notes also said: “The forensic laboratory in Lahore had no voice recognition facility… In the absence of a voice comparison report it cannot be said with certainty that the speech in question was actually made by Anjum Naz Sindhu.”Sandhu is one of three directors of the Science Locus School in Gujranwala. At his sentencing in June 2016, Naz and Ali were also sentenced to death, but only after first serving 35 years in jail. They also received fines of 80,000 rupees ($800).

A total of 486 cases have come before the military courts since their inception in the year 2015. The army courts, which were set up after passing a constitutional amendment, have concluded 333 cases and awarded capital punishment to 186 persons, said a written reply of the Ministry of Defence during question hour in the National Assembly.MNA Abdul Qahar Khan Wadan had inquired from the defence ministry about the total number of cases pending in the military courts at present along with details. In reply to this question, the ministry stated that 101 cases were in the military courts and that 52 cases had been dropped.According to the details provided to the parliamentarians, 79 individuals were awarded life imprisonment by these courts and 47 convicts jailed for 20 years.The military courts have also jailed one person for 18 years, another convict for 16 years, 13 individuals for 14 years, three persons for 10 years, and two convicts for seven years, the reply said.Only one individual was acquitted by these courts since their inception, it added.A total of 332 appeals were filed in military appeal courts out of which 307 had been finalised and only 25 were under process, the lawmakers were further informed.All the 151 mercy petitions sent to the Chief of Army Staff (COAS) had been rejected by him, it said.However, the rejected mercy petitions were moved to the President of Pakistan who had turned down 62 of them while 89 of them were under process with Ministry of Interior, the reply added.In the same connection, a total of 74 cases were termed sub judice in the superior courts, it said, adding that 49 of them were in the Supreme Court of Pakistan, three in the Lahore High Court, six in the Peshawar High Court and 16 in the Sindh High Court.

Pakistan is among the five most prolific executioners in the world with 487 executions in the last three years, while the president has rejected 513 mercy petitions in the last five years, a report launched on April 11 has found.The report, No Mercy: A Report on Clemency for Death Row Prisoners in Pakistan, was launched by Justice Project Pakistan.It said that the government has executed nearly 500 people since lifting the moratorium on the death penalty in 2014.And although the president possesses the constitutional authority under Article 45 to pardon death row defendants, in practice in such petitions have been consistently denied since December 2014, operating under a blanket policy for cases with strong evidence of humanitarian abuse and violations.The report quoted the Ministry of Interior as stating that the president’s office had rejected 513 mercy petitions by condemned prisoners – 444 of which were from the first 15 months after the resumption of executions in December 2014.The interior ministry has also informally confirmed that the government has a de facto policy to summarily reject all mercy pleas.

Hands off Cain is an international league of citizens and parliamentarians for the abolition of the death penalty in the world. It is a non-profit, non-violent, transnational and trans-national Partito Radicale founded in Brussels in 1993 and recognized in 2005 by the Italian Ministry of Foreign Affairs as a development co-operation NGO.